PYARA SINGH Vs. DELHI DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Pyara Singh by this petition under Art. 226 of the Constitution prays for the quashing of the order dated 15 th Oct. 1974 transferring and posting him as Upper Division Clerk in the Engineering Department. (Slum Wing) of the Delhi Development Authority. He also prays for his retention in the post of Naib Tehsildar (properties) besides other consequential reliefs.

(2.) The petitioner was in permanent service of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. He was posted as Naib Tehsildar being the senior most Upper Division Clerk in Slum and Housing Department of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi vide office order dated 19-4-1973. In pursuance of the decision taken by the Government of India, the work and staff relating to the implementation of the Slum Clearance and allied schemes was to be transferred from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi to the Delhi Development Authority. An option was sought from the members of the staff employed in Slum Wing of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. The petitioner opted for transfer and his services were transferred with effect from 1st March, 1974 on regular basis. He was Officiating Naib Tehsildar at that time. The admitted terms and conditions of transfer as contained in Annexure P-4 are as under:

(3.) On behalf of the respondent Delh' Development Authority it is submitted that there was a departmental enquiry pending against the petitioner and in view of that the petitioner had no legal right for promotion under law, that the petitioner held permanent status of Upper Division Clerk in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and there has been no change in the terms and conditions or status which the petitioner was holding in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi oh the date of his transfer to the D.D.A. It is admitted that the petitioner was the senior-most U.D.C. in the Slum Wing of the M.C.D. It is submitted that in M.C.D, the scale of pay of the U.D.C. and Naib Tehsildar was the same except that Naib Tehsildar used to get special pay besides conveyance allowance. If is submitted that 13 U.D.Cs. were promoted when regular posts in the slum wing of D.D.A. were created. The post of Naib Tehsildar was upgraded from the grade of 330-560 to 425-700 and. as such the post of Naib Tehsildar became a promotion post to be filled from among the U.D.Cs. On account of the departmental enquiry alleged to be pending against the petitioner it was considered appropriate to wait for the result of the enquiry and he was not promoted as Naib Tehsildar. It is submitted that the D'.DA.. was fully justified to withhold the promotion of the petitioner till the completion of the enquiry. It is also alleged that the post of establishment officer in the scale of 550-900 is a selection post to be filled up On the basis of seniority-cum-fitness. A copy of the enquiry report (Annex. R-51 has been filed by the respondents.